Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	church_n	faith_n	just_a	1,515	5	6.5831	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A13556	Regula vitæ the rule of the law vnder the Gospel. Containing a discovery of the pestiferous sect of libertines, antinomians, and sonnes of Belial, lately sprung up both to destroy the law, and disturbe the faith of the Gospell: wherein is manifestly proved, that God seeth sinne in iustified persons. By Thomas Taylor Dr. of Divinity, and pastour of S. Mary Aldermanbury, London.	Taylor, Thomas, 1576-1632.	1631 (1631)	STC 23851; ESTC S118279	80,247	284

punishment of sinne and you can bring no such place out of the new Testament Answ. Hath Christ done lesse for beleevers in the old Testament than in the new did they beare more wrath for their sin than we or did not Christ carry as much wrath from thē as from us was not his death as vertuous to the first ages of the world as to the last or did the vertue of it begin at the time of his passion or is not the faith of Messiah to come alike precio●s as the faith of him come already 2. But have we no place in the new Testament to shew beleevers corrected for sinne What is that 1 Cor. 11. For this cause many are weake and are sicke and many die It is too rash to say as one that these were carnall and hypocrites unlesse they be carnall and hypocrites that must not be condemned with the world 1 Pet. 4. 17. Iudgement must begin at Gods house Heb. 12. 6. He scourgeth every sonne whom hee receiveth Why because they are sonnes or because they have sinnes Object Ioh. 9. 3. Neither hath this man sinned nor his parents therfore afflictions are not for sinne and Iobs afflictions were all for tryall not for sinne Answ. 1. In generall The difference of the judgements of the godly and the wicked is not either 1. in the meriting cause for both are merited by sinne 2. Nor in their matter being materially both one the same sword the same plague the same famine the same blindnesse sicknesse and death 3. Nor in the ground of them for both are threatned and inflicted by the same Law 4. Nor in their sence and feeling for there is no difference between the smart of sonnes and slaves But the difference is in 1. the person inflicting 2. in the persons bearing and suffering 3. in the end of God which is not the same 4. in the fruit and issue which are much different in different persons the serious consideration of these grounds would let them see wherein their errour lurketh if they will not be willingly ignorant 2. For the instances First of the blinde man I answer that the position of one cause is not the remotion of another where many concurre neither doth the affirming of the principall cause deny the lesse principall God in this judgement principally intended his owne glory in the honouring of his Sonne and not principally the sinne either of the parents or sonne 2. Christ speaketh not of the meritorious cause of this judgement but of the finall cause and so the objection is not to the purpose Secondly The like we may say of Iob the principall end of his affliction was for tryall and not for correction but this excludeth not the meritorious cause nor proves that there was no correction in it at least might not be Object But Christ was extremely punished but not for sinne and therefore there are afflictions without sinne Answ. This is as impertinent a cavill as the case is singular Christ had no sinne in him but had sinne on him he had none inherent but had enough imputed he had none of his owne but the infinite burden of all the sinnes of all his members lay upon him for which he was plagued of God because he stood before God as the greatest malefactour that ever was not because he had proper sinne but appropriated not because he did any sinne but was made a sinne for us ●hat we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him Gods justice could not have punished him if he had not stood before him as a sinner So the objection turneth quite against themselves Object But Christ by his Kingly power reigneth to maintaine in the conscience the peace procured both against the Law and sinne and the Divell and the world and worldly reason Answ. Peace without disturbance neither within nor without the Apostle knew not Rom. 7. nor yet Christ himselfe who so left his legacy of peace of his Disciples as that notwithstanding in the world they must have affliction 2. It is enough that Christ reigneth to maintain our peace by weakening and subduing the power of sinne daily although he totally and wholly abolish it not here below and fatherly and loving correction rather furthers and strengtheneth his reigne than hinder or weaken it in us 10 ERROR That justified persons have no more to doe with repentance and to repent of every particular sinne is to beleeve that a man is not perfectly justified or at once but by peece-meale as sinne is committed yea it is to undervalue the sufferings of Christ as not ha●ing sufficiently satisfied for all sinnes past present and to come Answ. A desperate principle as much abolishing the Gospell as any of the former doth the Law and indeed no enemy to the Law can be a friend to the Gospell But we must know 1. That never can man be free from repentance till he be free from sinne to be repented of which can never be shaken off in this world The whole life is but one day of repentance and repentance is the work of that whole day and who but a profane libertine would not have his Master find him so doing We sweepe our houses every day and wash our hands every day because one contracteth dust and the other soyle every day much more have we need to cleanse daily the houses of our hearts See my treatise in●ituled The practise of Repentance Cap. 10. and therein many reasons for con●inuance of repe●tance 2. They forget that David and Peter repented after saith That the Church of Pergamus that kept the name of Christ and had not denied the faith must yet repent her selfe else Christ will come against her Rev. 2. 12. and 16. And how much cause have the best men to repent of their daily sinnes that must repent daily of their best duties which they must confesse are as a filthy clout 3. Although the spirit by faith assureth the beleever that all his sinnes are satisfied by the death of Christ yet the spirit also perswadeth the heart that in this way of humiliation and repentance we shall receive assurance of remission of daily sinnes and particular infirmities for else the spirit should faile in his office which is to bring even the house of David and the inhabitants of Ierusalem that is true beleevers to the fountaine of grace and stir up in them deepe sorrow and earnest lamentation in seeking pardon for daily sinnes and speciall provocations against the Lord whom by their sins they have pierced 4. Prayer for forgivenesse of daily sinnes is an act of repentance enjoyned by Christ on him that hath formerly repented is justified and calleth God Father as in that petition of his most holy prayer Forgive us our trespasses 5. They that overflow with love and outboast all others in their pretence of love which is so strong and active as they need no other mover forget that increase of love to God must

a sea of teares of tim●ly repentance the mis●●a●ling of simple men and women especially into such desperate wayes My intention being onely to propound the grounds of naked truth which as a right line is the rule of it selfe and of that which is crooked and that to my owne in my owne plaine and ordinary manner it was farre from my thought to make my labour more publicke till partly the scorne and insolency of these schismaticall spirits on the one hand and partly the importunity of many godly both Ministers and private persons thrust mee into a second survey and review of what I had delivered They said they knew some drawne off their opinions by hearing the doctrine preached and doubted not but if it were made more publicke it would be much more usefull to the Church especially seeing these seducers creepe into such corners of the Citty and Country where are weakest meanes of resistance whose strongest hopes and holdes lie in the ignorance and too credulous simplicity of their proselites I made many objections to my self some to them I knew this argument soundly and judicially handled already by others that it might more profitably and sufficiently be undertaken by some other better furnished with gifts and leisure how little I could expect the satisfaction of others in an argument of this moment who in the throng of businesse and burden of many weekly exercises could scarce gaine thoughts or time to satisfie my selfe How unsafe to thrust into a publicke quarrell how importune and lawles the adversaries who holde not themselves countable to God for any wrong they doe unto man But yet persuaded to deny my selfe for the service of God and his Church and that the seasonablenesse of the treatise might adde an advantage unto it and that it might be some stay to the teachable untill a more elaborate and compleate worke might by some other be prepared I yeelded unto the publication of that little which I had done animating my selfe with the same arguments that wise and prudent Generalls use to encourage and hearten their souldiers withall when they are to joyne issue with the approaching enemy and they be foure 1. The goodnesse and justice of the cause which is just and honourable for we take part with God and fight his battell in the quarrell of his most righteous Law 2. The victory is easie and certaine unlesse God and his Law can be conquered and who ever rose up against God and prospered 3. The quality of the adversaries must adde courage unto us Christians in name but siding and sorting with the damnable heretickes of ancient times of whom I will not speake what they are worthy to heare but what I may with judgement write and whom the sequell discourse will shew to be of proud furious and audacious spirits 4. The assurance of divine assistance for are the adversaries such certainly then is their strength gone God's spirit is gone from them for he teacheth the humble and sendeth the proud empty away They pretend the spirit and outboast all men that they are taught and led and moved by the spirit and are past all motives and persuasions of man or meanes but God's spirit is a soft sober calme and quiet spirit both in Christ the head and in all his members and that furious factious railing and quarrelsome spirit of theirs is that uncleane spirit of Satan usually breathed into hetickes and enemies of the truth and of the spirit of truth by whose onely assistance wee shall shape them not as they say in scorne a garment after our owne fashion but such an answer out of the Scriptures as shall not hide their nakednesse but uncover their ignorance emptinesse and folly and vindicate the holy Law of God from their schismaticall cavills and hereticall contempt And why not For doe we exclaime against the Papists for blotting out the second commandement as sacrilegious persons and against the Anabaptists for denying the fifth and shall we be silent at these sectaries whose blindnesse hath made them bolde to blot out all the ten at once which although they were writen with God's owne finger and that in tables of stone yet these mad men presume their nailes so steeled as that they can scratch them out all at once and yet God see no sin in them I shall speake unto them all along the Treatise and now will onely desire of them or rather of God for them these two things First that my reproofe may be a medicine unto them at least if it be conceived a wound yet not of an enemy but of one that out of love desireth to leave them a testimony of faithfulnesse and the other is that the Lord would worke in them a timely change both of opinion practise so as they may no longer turne the grace of God into wantonnesse and liberty but get out of this snare of the Divel wherein they are held to doe his will ● who in every thing opposeth and resisteth the righteous will of God re●vealed But to you that are desirous to walke in the olde and good way and are not yet infected with this spreading gangrene of licentiousnesse I shall be bolde to give some advise for prevention As 1. To looke carefully to your precious soules which Satan many wayes beleaguereth let not pretences of faith in Christ loose you from duty towards God catch not at ease or presposterous and overtimely comforts wherein the impostour hath you at advantage 2. Looke well to your estates and outward meanes lest these impostours make a prey and advantage on you as they have done on some already who have confessed that these pedlars have basely inveagled from them even to the very cushions of their windowes for the Apostle observed not in vain that through covetousnesse they make merchandise of unwary soules 3. Suspect such men as come with a strange language and unwonted phrases and manner of speaking for errour is a fruitfull mother yet is she ashamed of her brood and is willing to cover and apparell them with philosophicall and metaphysicall phrases and so these men are willing we should seek out the brats of their owne braine in the bushes and thickets of intricate discourses and in the meanders and laborinths of uncouth language wherein they desire to be admired rather than understood not unlike their predecessours in Calvins time of whom hee saith that they were like Gipsees that had gotten a cheating and canting language proper to themselves and this is one of the first principles of their cousening trade Surely the Ministery of Christ and his Apostles and of all godly teachers is to cast off all cloakes of shame and to walke not in craftinesse neither to handle the word of God deceitfully but in declaration of the truth to approve themselves to every mans conscience in the sight of God These cleane contrary studie how to involve things in darknesse and to obscure and extinguish if